Filed under: Coupe , Performance , Japan , Videos , Tokyo Motor Show , Scion , Subaru , Toyota , UK Badge engineering is the ironic label for when a company replaces the badge or branding of a product with that of another and considers it something new. Domestic automakers like Ford , General Motors and Chrysler have been vilified for their overuse of this practice. Then again, they weren’t often badge engineering rear-wheel-drive sports cars (though they’ve done that, too). This week, Toyota and Subaru both revealed their own versions of a RWD sports car jointly developed between the two companies: the GT 86 and BRZ . You’d be hard-pressed to tell them apart from a distance of 30 yards, but we got up close and personal with each at the 2011 Tokyo Motor Show this week and discovered that there are, in fact, subtle differences. Since we’ll be getting the also-slightly different Scion FR-S in the U.S., this exercise is really aimed at our European readers who will be offered the GT 86, but everyone’s free to participate. We’ve got videos of each model in the metal after the jump , and after you watch, let us know which one you prefer in the poll below. View Poll Continue reading In the Metal: Toyota GT 86 vs. Subaru BRZ [w/poll] In the Metal: Toyota GT 86 vs. Subaru BRZ [w/poll] originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 02 Dec 2011 19:59:00 EST.

Filed under: Concept Cars , Tokyo Motor Show , Hatchback , Toyota , Electric Toyota unveiled a handful of production and concept Aqua models at the 2011 Tokyo Motor Show . As you may recall, the Aqua will serve as the Prius C here in the United States when it lands at the Detroit Auto Show in early 2012. The Yaris -sized hatchback will come equipped with a 1.5-liter Atkinson cycle four-cylinder engine and an electric motor, though Toyota hasn’t said what we can expect in terms of total output. We do know that the vehicle’s svelte curb weight and smaller engine will likely translate into Prius-besting fuel economy numbers, so buyers can look forward to over 50 mpg in the city. The brightly-colored Aqua Kiriri Version and Aqua Piriri Version joined the production Aqua under the lights in Tokyo, giving the world a better idea of what the model could offer in terms of dealer modification. The little hatch looks sharp, and the fuel economy figures are enough to make anyone grin. Toyota Aqua concepts hint at Prius C possibilities originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 01 Dec 2011 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink

Filed under: Coupe , Performance , Tokyo Motor Show , Toyota Certainly for the moment, this is the biggest competition the Subaru BRZ has: its twin, the Toyota GT 86 . The volcanic orange coupe was unveiled in another corner of the Tokyo Motor Show , and frankly, it’s got a lot to recommend it. The frontal treatment is slightly different than on the BRZ, but the only digression out back is the lack of a spoiler, and the GT 86 looks pretty good without it. Inside, it’s a tale of two cabins. Clearly Toyota has brought a higher-spec cockpit to the party, and although you might not dig the red two-tone scheme, the iPhone cradle, toggle switches and white gauges are nifty. Of course, that niftyness will cost you a navigation screen, but these are exactly the kinds of choices the GT 86 vs BRZ crowd will need to make. Brush up on the specs in the release after the jump and take a walk around it in our high-res image gallery. Continue reading Toyota GT 86 makes a compelling case for itself Toyota GT 86 makes a compelling case for itself originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 30 Nov 2011 01:46:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink

Filed under: Concept Cars , Hybrid , Japan , Tokyo Motor Show , Hatchback , Toyota , Electric We’ve heard the argument before: Why get a big hybrid when a small hatchback can, in real-world conditions, post similar fuel economy figures. And to them, Toyota answers with the new Prius C . Smaller than the existing Prius , the Prius C will launch at the rapidly approaching Tokyo Motor Show and makes its U.S. debut shortly after at the Detroit Auto Show in January. The nimble Prius C is about the size of a Yaris but packs a hybrid drivetrain, coupling an as-yet undisclosed “high-output” electric motor with a 1.5-liter gasoline engine. Destined to be called the Aqua in the Japanese Domestic Market, the hybrid hatchback also boasts a low center of gravity for better handling and luggage space. Compared to the standard Prius, the lower weight and smaller, less powerful engine in the Prius c will result in better-than-Prius fuel economy. Toyota says it will achieve over 50 miles per gallon in the city, the highest city fuel economy for any non-plug-in vehicle. Of course the Prius C isn’t the only debut Toyota has in store for Tokyo, as the production FT-86 – also boasting a low center of gravity thanks to a Subaru -sourced boxer engine mounted low in the frame – is set to bow at the Japanese expo as well. But Toyota isn’t stopping there.

Filed under: Coupe , Budget , Performance , Tokyo Motor Show , Scion , Subaru , Toyota , Rumormill Scion FR-S Concept – Click above for high-res image gallery The wait is over… almost. According to a report from Inside Line that jives with what we’ve been hearing ourselves, Toyota (or Scion , or both) and Subaru are set to use the Tokyo Motor Show to jointly unveil the hotly anticipated rear-wheel-drive sport coupes that they have been working on together since what seems like the beginning of time. Yes, that means we need to sit back and keep waiting until December, but at least it’s some sort of real real date to mark on the calendar, right? Until then, you’ll just have to be content with what is sure to be an endless series of spy shots and leaked information on the affordable sportscar duo. Inside Line also offers something of a timetable for production, saying that the Scion FR-S will hit American shores sometime in 2012 (rather nebulous, no?) while the unnamed Subaru version will begin production in the spring of the same year. Toyota and Subaru to unveil production sport coupes in Tokyo? originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 20 May 2011 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink